The sides also discussed the implementation of the Eastern Program to build a unified network for upstream and downstream operations, and gas refining and transportation in East Siberia and the Far East, which will guarantee economic security of East Asia.
TNK-BP [RTS: TNBP], the result of a 2003 merger, is a leading crude producer in Russia, also ranked among the world's top 10 independent oil companies. The company's operations are located in West and East Siberia, and the Volga-Urals Region.
Gazprom was appointed in 2001 to coordinate all gas projects in East Siberia and Russia's Far East and is interested in joining the Kovykta gas project in East Siberia, developed by TNK-BP.
With 1.9 trillion cubic meters of proven reserves, the 62.4% TNK-BP-owned giant Kovykta deposit is crucial for the Russian government, which is pursuing ambitious plans to build a gas pipeline network to meet Asian nations' energy needs, primarily energy-hungry China, and to diversify its export destinations.
Gazprom's experts have estimated natural gas reserves in Russia's East at 59 trillion cubic meters, or 25% of Russia's gas reserves as a whole, with 45 trillion cubic meters on the mainland and about 15 trillion cubic meters in shelf deposits.
Experts also forecast a 6.1% growth in discovered reserves by 2030.
